Kop idols Gerrard and Suarez come on as substitutes... and promptly see the Italians score a quickfire double to claim a Europa League win

Like a good Western, the script was written for Liverpool's cavalry to ride to the rescue in the last reel of this Europa League tie.

Yet that proposed finale - as Steven Gerrard and Luis Suarez were sent on as superstar substitutes with the swagger of Gary Cooper - didn't take into account the ludicrous cowboy defending of the home side.

And so it was the final scene was of Udinese drawing round their own wagons to see off the threat of the big guns and hold out for a victory their celebrations suggested was a famous one, after two dramatic goals in two second half minutes stunned Anfield.

Andrew Powell

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The score was finely balanced at one apiece when the Reds gunslingers were sent into the fray on for the final third of the game, but within barely six minutes, the Italians had a match-winning lead with a devastating two goal burst.

Mind you, as manager Brendan Rodgers pointed out afterwards, they were given much assistance by some shocking defending from the home side, as a catalogue of errors led to the defeat.

The Reds had dominated the first half, led through a fine goal from Jonjo Shelvey and looked to be cruising to victory, but a Udinese equaliser just 32 seconds after the break after a bad mistake from Glen Johnson was a portent of things to come.

And how they did.

JohnPowell

A new hope: Suarez makes it 3-2, but Liverpool couldn't equalise

Just after the cavalry arrived, the game turned on its head in one mad minute.

First Shelvey, the first half hero, turned villain, when he somehow contrived to 'clear' a goalbound shot from Suarez off the Udinese line, much to his embarrassment.

From there, the Italians marched to the other end of the pitch, and the unfortunate Sebastian Coates ridiculously smashed a free kick from the substitute Lazzari into the roof of his own net, under little pressure.

They weren't finished either, and when the still dangerous and still supremely impressive Antonio Di Natale showed his quality once more with a fine ball, Giovanni Pasquale provided an equally sublime finish from the edge of the box.

As Rodgers admitted, it was self-inflicted misery, and not even Suarez could defy such wounds - though he gave it his best shot, with a brilliant free-kick on 75 minutes that curled into the far corner from fully 25 yards.

That set up the final cavalry charge, and the truth even amidst Liverpool's cowboy defending was that they created enough chances to have dragged themselves level.

But Suarez saw one shot well saved, fellow sub Raheem Sterling missed two chances, and then Stewart Downing fluffed his lines in the last seconds, with a tame shot from a fabulous position.

It means Liverpool find themselves in a difficult position in this group, and that is criminal given their dominance for so long in the game, typified by Shelvey's audacious goal, as he burst from midfield to emphatically find the net with a fine header.

Realistically, the English club must now get something from their remaining travels in this group against thoroughly decent Russian and Italian opposition, and they will struggle to so on the evidence of this defending.